Reducing-valve.



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REDUCING VALVE. APPLICATION FILED 8EPT.6, 19'07. RENEWED D110. 2, 1910.

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CLYDE J. coLnmfim, or NEW YQIRK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR T0 commn HUIBEBT, or new YORK, N. Y.

REDUCING-VALVE.

specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed September 6, 1907, SerialNo. 391,704. Renewed- December 2, 1910. Serial No. 595,328.

Patented July 11, 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLYDE J. COLEMAN, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at borough of Manhattan, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented a certain new and useful- Improvement in Reducing-Valves, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

which the diaphragm is subjected to fluid pressure, so as to avoid all joints through which leakage mightoccur.

The invention comprises, further, the location of the diaphragm and the inlet valve at opposite points in the pressure chamber the lever mechanism connecting these parts being arranged to close the inlet valve in a direction opposite to the direction in which the diaphragm is moved by the pressure of the fluid in the chamber.

I will now describe the embodiment of my invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and will thereafter point out my invention in 'claims.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a vertical median section of a reducing valve embodying the invention,! and Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on line a: w Fig.1.

The illustrated embodiment of the invention has a cylindrical casing l which contains the working parts. At the bottom of the casing is a shoulder 2 upon. which rests a chambered member 3 which is connected with a pipe 4 from which the fluid under high pressure is received. The fluid passes through an inlet passage 5 to a valve seat 6 formed in the member 3 and cooperating with a conical inlet valve 7.

vided with a shallow chamber l t which con-- The upper end of the member 3 is prostitutes what is hereinafter referred to as the pressure chamber, and the upper wall of this chamber is formed by a diaphragm 8 of flexible sheet metal. phragm 8 is a diaphragm-retaining cup or partition 9 forming above the diaphragm an atmospheric chamber communicating with the outer air by apassage 10. Washers 11 and 12 are placed above and below the diaphragm to insure fluid-tight joints.

By means of a rivet 13 a yoke 15 is secured to the center of the diaphragm. The

yoke has hooked ends 16 which engage the outer ends of two levers I? which are pivotednear their centers on a slotted cross-bar or frame 18. The frame is fixed at its ends between the washer 12 and the bottom of the pressure chamber. This lever-carrying frame is separable from the other parts of the device and is retained in place by virtue of its position in the pressure chamber or valve cup 14. In assembling the device it is merely necessary to place such frame in position in the valve cup, The inner ends of the levers 17 engage the top of the inlet valve 7.

The reducing valve of the drawings is designed to operate against high pressures,

and is accordingly provided with two simi- 'lar valves and dlaphragms arranged to. op-

erate in succession so as to reduce the pressure in two stages. It is of course understood that provision could be made for any desired number of stages of pressure reduction. A second chambered member 19 forms a second pressure chamber or valve cupfor the next succeeding stage of pressure reduction. The pressure chamber lais provided with a service-outlet 21 which communicates with a sealed gas-passage or service-passage 22 formed between the cup 9 and the member 19- by an interposed packing-ring 20. The fluid issuing from the outlet 21 of the first pressure chamber 14 passes across the space 22 above the partition 9, and thence it passes through a short passage 23 to a second valve 24 controlled by a diaphragm 25. The construction of this second valve mechanism is similar in all respects to that of the first, except that the diaphragm is made somewhat thinner and less resistant, to adapt it to operate at a lower pressure than the diaphragm 8. From the second pressure chamber the fluid is delivered to the point of use through its outlet 28 and final service-passage 29, formed between the second disk-retaining cup and an end-plug or clo- Above the diaber-forming members together. It is to be noted that each diaphragm-retaining cup or partition is separable and forms at one of its sides an atmospheric space and at its other side forms a gas-passage leading from the outlet of one stage of pressure reduction to the inlet of the next lower stage,-or to the final service-passage, as'the case may be. This manner of construction contributes largely to economy and convenience of manufacture and greatly facilitates cleaning of the various parts and passages.

In assembling the device it is only necessary to place the parts successively in the casing 1 in proper juxtaposition and screw in the clamping-ring 27. The pressure of the gas tends constantly to open the valves,

but as the pressure rises in the pressure chambers the diaphragms, operating through the lever mechanisms, tend with increasing force to resist the opening of the valves, and thus the pressure is automatically reduced to a constant degree in the manner usual in such devices. It is obvious that a great reduction of pressure may be efiected by each valve, owing to the great difference in the areasof the valve and the diaphragm exposed to pressure, and thus the device is adapted for controlling the delivery-of gas from tanks in which it is stored under high pressure. The reduction of pressure may be more or less modified, however, by so arranging the-parts that the elasticity of the diaphragm tends either to assist or resist the closing of the valve, according as a greater or smaller reduction is required. Since the mechanlsm connecting each valve with its diaphragm is located entirely within the pressure chamber there are no moving joints at which leakage may occur nor is any packing required, so that the valve will operate indefinitely without attention.

The invention may be used in connection with liquids as well as with gases, and is susceptible of a wide variety of uses. The

construction illustrated in the drawings may be modified in various ways without departure from thenature and scope of the invention as defined in the succeeding claims.

I claim:

1.'A reducing valve comprising a pressure chamber provided with an outlet and an inlet, a diaphragm forming a wall of the chamber, means for retaining the diaphragm in place, an inlet valve controlling the 1nlet, a frame fitted into the pressure chamber and retained in place by the diaphragm-retaining means, and a lever pivoted on the frame and connecting the diaphragm and the valve.

2. A reducing valve comprising a pressure chamber provided with an outlet and an inlet, a diaphragm forming a wall of the chamber, means for retaining the diaphra' in place, an inlet valve controlling the 1n-.

let, a frame fitted into the pressure chamber and retained in placeby the diaphragm-retaining means, and connections between the diaphragm and the inlet valve comprising a yoke secured to one of said members and two levers pivoted to the frame and engaging the other said member and the opposite ends of the yoke. l

3. A reducing valve comprising a pressure chamber provided with an outlet and an inlet, a diaphragm forming a wall of the chamber, a diaphragm-retaining cup forming an atmospheric chamber at the other side of the diaphragm from the pressure chamber, a member cooperating with the cup to form a service-passage at the other side of the cup from the atmospheric chamber and communicating with the outlet, and an inlet valve in control of the inlet and controlled by the diaphragm.

4. A reducing valve comprising a pressure chamber provided with an outlet and an inlet, a diaphragm forming a wall of the chamber, an inlet valve controlling the inlet, and connections between the diaphragm and the inlet valve comprising a yoke se cured to one of said members and provided with hooked ends, and two levers pivoted within the chamber and engaging the other.

said member and having portions entering into and embraced by the hooks of the yoke,

whereby positive movement in either direction is communicated'between the yoke and the levers.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CLYDE J. COLEMAN.

VVitnesses':

I WM. ASHLEY KELL ALBERT V. T. DAY. 

